Weingut Wegelin

The story of Weingut Wegelin begins in 1957 when Anna and Hans-Ulrich Wegelin acquired the old patrician house Scadenagut in Malans. Their son Peter took over in 1980 and became one of the true pioneers of the Bündner Herrschaft wine region. For nearly three decades, he worked in the winding historic cellars of Schloss Bothmar before building a stunning modern winery in 2004, a glass-fronted architectural gem perched high above Malans. The estate now farms around 10 hectares of vineyards across some of the region's finest sites, including the steep terraced slopes of Bothmarhalde, the highest vineyard in the Bündner Herrschaft reaching up to 670 meters above sea level. The soils here are a distinctive mix of limestone-rich slate and Bündner debris, shaped by ancient geological forces. Constant winds sweep through these terraces, keeping the grapes healthy and allowing them to ripen slowly with remarkable concentration.

The winemakers and their philosophy

Since 2019, Rafael Hug and his wife Mathilde Hug Pédeutour have been running the estate together. Rafael, a local Malanser, earned his first pocket money as a teenager working in Wegelin's vineyards, then trained as a winemaker and studied oenology in Vienna. He's been making the wines here since 2012. Mathilde is also a trained oenologist, and together they've sharpened the estate's focus on terroir and individual vineyard sites. The decision to farm organically was made about ten years ago together with Peter Wegelin, who remains quietly present in the background. The couple draws inspiration from great biodynamic estates like Domaine de la Romanée-Conti in Burgundy and Nicolas Joly in the Loire, but as Rafael says, they prefer to make an original rather than copy anyone. Their approach is minimal intervention: spontaneous fermentation with wild yeasts, long maceration periods, aging in Burgundian barrels with restrained use of new oak, and letting the wines develop at their own pace.

The wines

Wegelin produces a focused range centered on Burgundy varieties, with Pinot Noir as the heart of the portfolio. The entry-level Blauburgunder is fresh and characterful, while the single-vineyard bottlings from Weisstorkel, Bothmarhalde, and Scadena each express their distinct terroir with remarkable clarity. These are elegant, cool-climate Pinots with red fruit, earthy notes, and impressive aging potential. The white wines are equally compelling: Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, and two exceptional Chardonnays from the Frassa and Bothmarhalde sites that show mineral precision and tension. The estate also produces a rare Completer from the ancient Malanserrebe grape, a honeyed, complex white that has earned scores up to 96 points. There's even a Scampagna, an extra brut sparkling wine made entirely from Pinot Noir. Every wine reflects the couple's obsession with place and their belief that great wines tell the story of where they come from.